Collections : [Yale University -Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library]

The scrapbooks provide evidence of the personal and professional life of Amos Gerry Beman, pastor and social activist, between 1830 and 1858. The scrapbooks contain writings, correspondence, newspaper clippings, and printed ephemera by and about Beman. Scrapboks I and II consist of clippings of Beman's letters to the editor and articles by Beman, in addition to newspaper clippings of articles, poetry, and other clippings of interest to Beman. Scrapbook III contains letters of recommendation, journal entries written by Beman in 1838 while living in Hartford, Connecticut, certificates and correspondence pertaining to the founding of the Temple Street African Church in New Haven, Connecticut, deeds, receipts, and other material. Scrapbook IV consists of articles of interest to Beman as well as an articles on the "Colored Men's Convention" (1849) that mentions Beman's role in the convention. The scrapbooks are a window into Beman's work as a teacher, pastor, and social activist in Connecticut during the nineteenth-century, and more broadly, the Temple Street African Church and the African-American community it served in New Haven at this time.